Midway
Station may not be all for naught after all. Without debate on Monday, the city council approved potential developer Dennis Anderson’s request to rezone 43.5
acres of land on the north side of the property.

What was once zoned as industrial, then residential is now industrial again, because the Woodford County Economic
Development Authority has prospective industrial buyers for the tract, which
could create hundreds of jobs.

Midway Station is visible across I-64 from the Shell. (Photo by Dylan Russell)

The Interstate 64 interchange has already seen some
development recently. Late last year, a Shell station and convenience store
opened on the former Weems property on the other side of the interchange, now
known as the Green Gables development, owned by Anderson.

The success of the Shell station showed the viability of
property and helped get the ball rolling on Midway Station, Anderson said
before the April 10 meeting at which the Woodford County Planning Commission
recommended the rezoning.

Anderson and city officials have said there is a synergy to
the two tracts: The convenience store created a nearby where Midway Station
workers could eat and shop, and helped attract McDonald’s Corp., which has
received approval for a restaurant on the site. That will make the interchange even more
attractive to business and industry, they say.

In March, Anderson told the Messenger, “We have been aiming
for big brands that say, ‘This is a for-real location.’” Mayor Tom Bozarth has
said that a McDonald’s would be a good thing for the development.

The
Shell station sits right off I-64 and is easily visible to interstate traffic.
Many cars flock off of the interstate to get gas and food such as biscuits,
fried chicken, pizza and other quick bites to go.

Working behind the front register this week was Melissa
Wilson, a Midway native. Asked whether the business attracts mostly local or
highway travelers, she said, “We have both. I’m a local, and we needed this
store.”

Brandy
Howard, a Frankfort native and nurse at the University of Kentucky, stopped to
get gas on her way to work Tuesday.

“I forgot
to get gas earlier, so I stopped here since it is right off of the interstate,”
said Howard.

Many
license plates of cars getting gas were from different counties, so there is
plenty of highway traffic. McDonald’s would provide interstate traffic with a nationally
known place to eat close to the gas station, and could draw people into Midway.

The
grand prize of the development is a hotel. A gas station and a McDonald’s would
bring Midway that much closer to obtaining a hotel, which Bozarth has said is a
primary goal of development for Midway.

A hotel nearby could bring more people
into Midway and make the town more of a gateway for Woodford County, which has
bed and breakfasts but no hotels – and thus little revenue from the lodging tax
that is used for tourism promotion.

So, the Shell Station may have been a big stepping stone for the interchange area, playing a
pivotal role in helping make something out of Midway Station, perhaps making
the city's “failed industrial park” a success after all.

Tuesday, April 29, 2014

The halting of a proposed natural-gas-liquids pipeline that would stretch across Kentucky and through part of greater Midway left some landowners relieved but wary.

“The general feeling is that everyone is cautiously
optimistic,” said Corlia Logsdon, creator of www.StopBluegrassPipeline.us. “We do feel that the announcement is good news for
those of us who were concerned about our families, neighbors and our homes.”

The Bluegrass Pipeline, planned to run from West Virginia
to the Gulf Coast, posted a statement from representatives Bill
Lawson and Michael McMahon saying that the project is on indefinite hold.

The reason given was because the customer base for natural gas liquids on the coast was not large enough to build on the planned route. “Bluegrass Pipeline appears to be a project that’s ahead of its time,” they said.

Part of a Q and A on the pipeline website said, “While we are not investing additional capital in this project at this
time, we continue to seek customers for this project and still believe
the Bluegrass Pipeline project is the best long-term solution in the
marketplace for moving this resource to market.”

If Bluegrass Pipeline does not exercise its options for easements within the three-year term of the option, the easement will expire.

In late March, a Kentucky judge ruled that natural-gas-liquid pipelines cannot use eminent domain to obtain land rights from Kentucky
landowners. The Q and A said that ruling, which is being appealed, did not affect the decision.

Opponents rallied against the pipeline, while supporters
stood strong for the benefits it would grant them and their communities. Those who granted easements to the company were given
non-refundable money and will not be asked to return it, the pipeline
representatives said.

The pipeline has closed its local offices, but Lawson and McMahon said they want to maintain a close connection with Kentucky communities: “We value the relationships we have built and plan to stay
connected to the communities, providing updates on the project as needed and
keeping an open door for continued dialogue.”

Logsdon and those in her organization, Stop the Bluegrass
Pipeline, do not believe the war is over.

“We will be safe for a little longer,” she said. “However,
we also believe very strongly that this project could be revived in the future
and that we cannot stop working to get safeguards in place to protect
Kentuckians' property rights from corporate abuse of eminent domain by companies
that are not in public service.

“Clearly, we have much work to do, and I am confident our group will continue working to protect our
natural resources that we all depend on for life and livelihood.”

The pipeline representatives wrote, “We spent more than a year listening and talking with communities all along the route. We learned much about each and every community we interacted with. That is why we know that this project while ahead of its time is needed to advance the manufacturing revolution in this country, which is creating thousands of jobs and advancing energy independence.”

Monday, April 28, 2014

Tonight's “Time to Talk” event, sponsored by the Woodford County Alcohol and
Substance Abuse Policy board, has been postponed due to the inclement
weather that is expected to arrive in Versailles this evening. Many
of the event’s speakers are emergency personnel and others are traveling some
distance to speak at the event. The ASAP board said these presenters' safety and the safety of
those in attendance "is of the utmost importance, therefore we are postponing
the event to a later date, which will be announced soon. We
apologize for any inconvenience this may cause."

Sunday, April 27, 2014

Loretta Crawford was an uplifting woman who helped others and gave back to her community. She spent most of her 54 years in a wheelchair, but served as a guide to everyone who needed her assistance, said those who knew her.

Crawford passed away on Easter Sunday, April 20. A
visitation and funeral service were held Saturday at Pilgrim Baptist Church in
Midway.

“She was
more of an inspiration for those who felt worthless,” Tony Owsley, a childhood
friend, said in an interview.. “She still had the strength to give it to those
who felt weak. She was a beautiful person, and had a beautiful soul.”

The ambience of the church during the visitation was
peaceful, yet engaging. The pews were filled with Crawford’s friends, family
and admirers, who were kind and neighborly as they gave her son and the rest of
the family their condolences.

“Her
nickname was Booweezy growing up,” said Janet Owsley-Williams, another childhood
friend and Tony Owsley’s cousin. “She always had a smile on her face no matter
what, even by her being in her wheelchair. She never let that get her down.”

For most
of her youth, Crawford lived in Midway. She was born in Versailles and
graduated from Woodford County High School. She spent most of her adult life in
Lexington but she was well remembered in Midway; Mayor Tom Bozarth noted her
passing at the start of last Monday’s city council meeting.

Crawford experienced two life-altering events when she was a
teenager that paralyzed her from the waist down. According to her son Andrew,
the first occurred when she was 15 and was accidentally shot by her father. The
other incident happened a year later after she recovered; she was thrown
through the windshield of a car driven by a friend.

These two compounding
incidents caused her to be permanently bound to a wheelchair, but the people
who loved her say she lived her life positively and served to guide people
during their own journeys as well.

“My
mother was my hero, my inspiration,” Andrew Crawford said. He was an offensive
guard for Bryan Station High School, where his mother served as the team mom
and played basketball for the University of Kentucky Lady Wheel Cats.

Crawford worked for the Lexington-Fayette Urban County
Government for 18 years in several positions, including caseworker and budget
analyst, and was a communications officer before retiring in 2006. Her obituary
said she helped many people achieve professional training and employment, which
made her a valuable asset to the Lexington community.

“She
always wanted to raise a good son,” says Kelley Coffey, friend of one of
Loretta’s sisters since childhood. “She was very pleasant to be around, and she
always had words of wisdom.”

According
to her son, Loretta had a kidney removed five years ago, and this led to
some complications. After years of fighting the issues in her respiratory
system, unfortunately, she could fight no longer.

At the
funeral, Elder William C. Wright quoted 2 Timothy 4:7, in which Paul the
apostle says “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have
kept the faith,” and Psalm 23:4, “Yea,
though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I shall fear no evil…”
Wright said God places barriers, or valleys, in our lives for us to overcome
them.

“Not only did she have the encouragement and support from
her loving family … not only did she draw continuously from the wells of
friendship that she formed throughout her life,” Wright said, “but through it
all, she realized that she was never alone, because she had a comforter that is
the Holy Spirit … ”

Loretta Crawford overcame incredible obstacles, and managed
to be there for others. She was loved by many and will truly be missed.

Wednesday, April 23, 2014

Water leaks and lines were the main topics of discussion at
Monday evening’s city council meeting.

After months of discussion, a new ordinance has been drafted
to govern water bill adjustments, and the council is planning to replace water
lines on Higgins Street with federal money loaned by the state.

Adjusting the bills of property owners who have large leaks
has been a headache for the council for some time. This ordinance would allow
adjustments for farms, which don’t qualify for them now because they are not on
the sewer system. The ordinance is also designed to help city officials decide
if a property owner actually needs an adjustment.

The council wants property
owners to be able to have an adjustment
if the leak is not their fault. The ordinance was drafted to discourage
negligence and will only allow one adjustment in a 12-momth period, based on
proof of repairs completed by themselves or a plumber.

Most
of Monday’s discussion dealt with whether a leak qualifying for an adjustment
would have to be underground, as the original draft of the ordinance said, or
could also be a leak inside the home, as requested by Council Member Dan
Roller.

Council Member Sara Hicks said, “We don’t want to reward
negligence.” Council Member Sharon
Turner asked, “What if someone fills their pool up and says they had a high
water bill?" Regardless of how the ordinance is written, she said, “People will do whatever they can do to find a loophole.”

Nevertheless, the council tentatively agreed to include
any leak on the customer’s side of the meter.

More changes were made to the draft, including that
decisions on adjustments would be made by a sewer and water committee, instead
of the mayor. Josh Salsburey, who was sitting in for city attorney Phil
Moloney, said he would have a redraft for the council to consider Monday
morning at the council's special meeting Bozarth's proposed budget for the 2014-15 fiscal year.

The council approved a contract with HMB Professional
Engineers of Frankfort for work on the Higgins Street water project, contingent on approval
of the loan by the Kentucky Infrastructure Authority.

The contingency was included at the behest of Council Member
Bruce Southworth, who expressed reluctance to obligate the city before the
grant was approved. Bozarth urged approval, saying, “This is an opportunity,
and Midway needs to take advantage of it for the improvement of the water lines.”

HMB’s water/wastewater division manager, Chris Stewart, said
there will be three phases of the project. Phase 1, on the western section of
the street, would connect all homes to the six-inch line serving fire hydrants and run an extension to an existing three-inch line. Phase 2,
between Winter and Gratz streets, would remove a two-inch line and connect with
a three-inch line. Phase 3, from Gratz Street to Brand Street, would add a
six-inch line at the end of the street.

HMB has estimated the project cost, including engineering, administrative and
environmental work, to be around $214,050, Stewart said. The estimated construction cost will be around $146,000. Stewart said he estimated that the
loan would cost all water customers in the city an average of $1.67 a month on
their bills, but KIA may calculate a lower cost, which the city would follow.

On an active construction project, Stewart said he would
contact the contractor on the handicapped ramp project on East Main Street to
correct some largely cosmetic problems with the work.

The council approved use of nearly $30,000 in leftover
housing funds for materials to build a Habitat for Humanity home at 218 N.
Winter St. The money comes from federal funds Midway recaptured from Habitat home occupants who moved out before their homes were fully paid for.

Doug Searcy of Woodford County Habitat for Humanity said the group
has built eight houses in Midway and is also planning to building a 10th one at 209
Stephens St. He said, “I appreciate the cooperation of the council and hope I see you as
volunteers out there helping to build the house on North Winter Street.”

The council heard first reading of an ordinance to return to
industrial zoning 43 acres in Midway Station that were among the tracts rezoned
as residential several years ago. Bozarth said he wants to have a second
reading and approval of the ordinance during Monday morning’s special meeting.

The property, owned by the Woodford County Development Authority, is under consideration by major industries. "We're very excited about it," said Dick Murphy, the attorney for developer Dennis Anderson. EDA Executive Director Craig McAnelly said after he left the meeting that the prospective sale of the property did not depend on speedier-than-usual rezoning.

The council approved Bozarth’s request to place five
military flags, one for each branch of service, behind the veterans’ monument
in the cemetery.

Turner announced that an event called “Time to Talk,” from 6
to 8 p.m. Monday, April 28next Thursday at the Kentucky Community and Technical College System
office in Versailles, will discuss heroin issues in Woodford County. Also,
Turner said this Saturday is National Drug Take Back Day. To drop off old or
unneeded prescriptions, go to the Woodford County Courthouse in Versailles from
10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Tuesday, April 22, 2014

By Miranda Sergent
University of Kentucky School of Journalism and Telecommunications

One of the longest, roughest winters in many years reminded
Kentuckians that roadway maintenance is a huge priority in small Kentucky
communities. Midway has had some challenges and changes on that front lately,
and outgoing Mayor Tom Bozarth has ideas for an even bigger change.

Bozarth has an emerging idea that he thinks will better the
town of Midway. He wants to merge the city’s street department with Woodford
County’s road department. He says he doesn’t understand why the county has three road
departments and he thinks it would be logical to
merge them into one.

“The Woodford County
Road Department has the equipment and capabilities and it could save Midway and
Versailles money for our taxpayers,” Bozarth says, adding that the quality and
level of service would greatly improve for all three jurisdictions. The county has a road engineer.

Bozarth’s plan has several supporters, but not County
Judge-Executive John Coyle. He says the City of Midway would benefit from the
merging of road crews, but the county would not.

Bozarth says the Midway road crew has done a good job
maintaining the city’s streets, but if merged with the county crews, work could be more efficient and more
resources could be available. He said no one in Midway should have to lose
their job in a merger.

Midway mayoral candidates Sharon Turner and Grayson
Vandegrift, both on the city council, say they are interested in looking further
into the idea of merged road services if elected.

Vandergrift says, “I like the idea of looking into merged
services in certain cases so that Midway can save the taxpayers money and avoid
duplicating services.”

Turner said the idea is worth researching, and thinks the
merger of the police departments into the Versailles force, and the emergency
management agreement among the governments, both work well.

Midway-area
Magistrate Larry Craig agrees that merged services could be a great idea. “Anytime
you can do away with the duplication of services, it can be beneficial,” he
says. “You might spend the same amount of money, but efficiency would go up.
Merged services doesn’t mean you cut the budget necessarily, but you get more
for your dollar.”

Craig said Woodford County road crews have better equipment
than the City of Midway, and adding the cities’ equipment and workers would only
improve the services. He said that if the county could develop a contracting
system for the road crews like it has done for the police department; in the
long run money will be saved.

Coyle, who is running for re-election without opposition in
the May 20 Democratic primary, disagrees. He and Bozarth clashed over road
matters when Midway became a fourth-class city, like Versailles, Coyle and the
Fiscal Court stopped clearing snow in the city.

“The court and I felt we must
treat both fourth class cities alike so we no longer need to clear the roads
inside the Midway city limits,” he said. The city has hired a private contractor
for show clearance at a cost of about $20,000.

Monday, April 21, 2014

Windstream Communications is extending high-speed
Internet service to Midway and many other rural areas in Kentucky with the help
of $60 million in economic stimulus grants from the federal government.

The
fiber-optic service will include places where the company currently has no
customers for its copper-wire Digital Subscriber Line service, said Scott
Morris, senior adviser for corporate affairs and spokesman for Windstream.

That is good news for horse farms like Airdrie Stud on Old Frankfort Pike, which needs two separate lines in order for everyone who needs to watch online video of horse races to do so at the same time, adminisrator Laura Sullivan said.

“They watch horses on a daily basis,” she said. They’re on it all the time watching our horses. It is very important.” She said the Gainsborough, Three Chimneys and Darby Dan farms, all along Old Frankfort Pike, are in similar situations dealing with slow service.

Sullivan said Windstream is the the farm’s only choice because Time Warner Cable, which offers Internet with TV and phone service in Midway, doesn’t reach Airdrie. “There is no other option at this point other than Windstream,” she said.

Morris said Windstream is mainly a rural provider and wants to expand broadband services to as many places in Midway that they can fit within the budget. The grants from the 2009 economic stimulus legislation will
enable much faster Internet connections as well as expand future selection of
communication and entertainment services, he said in an interview.

The idea behind the
stimulus grants, he said, is to provide high-speed Internet services in areas where it
wasn’t previously possible for financial reasons.

“In the country, if you live really far out, you probably can’t get broadband speeds, you can probably only get dialup,” he said.

Broadband speeds are often not as fast as expected. Sullivan said Airdrie gets up to 3.5 mpbs, but the speed varies, getting even as low as “one and a half [mpbs], depending on the day.”

The grants cover 75 percent of the project costs throughout the country, leaving Windstream with the other 25 percent, roughly $16.4 million in Kentucky.

“Windstream was the largest recipient of these grants,” Morris said. “What we’re doing is we’re filling in gaps in our network where there is dialup service but not broadband service. Each one of these projects are relatively small because they’re just filling in pockets under the rules set by the agricultural program … which determines how much money would be awarded per location.”

The grants came through the Department of Agriculture's
Rural Utilities Service. RUS spokeswoman Anne Mayberry said in an email, “When
complete, Windstream estimates the network will offer broadband service to
approximately 225,000 households, 10,000 businesses and 1,000 anchor
institutions, such as schools, libraries, hospitals and municipal facilities in
80 communities.”

Mayberry said Congress passed the stimulus package ‘‘to help
lift our nation from the greatest economic crisis in our lifetimes and lay the
foundation for future growth.’’ She said
the package provided RUS with $2.5 billion to expand access to broadband
services in areas that are at least 75 percent rural and ‘‘without sufficient
access to high speed broadband service to facilitate rural economic
development.’’

Morris said after the project is complete, which is to be in
late October, Windstream will notify prospective broadband customers that the
service is available in their area. The customers decide whether or not they
want to sign up for it.

“When we deploy the
fiber optic cable and electronic hardware that is necessary to deliver
broadband to unserved areas, we frequently pass by existing customer locations.
In some cases, these current customers may then qualify for faster speeds,” he
said. “It would be up to the customer to decide whether he or she wanted the
faster speed. There are no automatic price increases.”

For example, Morris
said customers who previously qualified for service with a speed of up to 6
megabits per second might qualify for up to 12 mbps after the project is
finished.

Windstream has leased the former city dump on Spring Station Road from the city for an installation related to the project and is paying the city a one-time fee of $15,000, three times what it originally offered.

Sunday, April 20, 2014

Midway College is trying to attract students from Mid-Continent University near Mayfield, which is closing because of financial problems. Midway is waiving application fees for transfer students and "will work quickly, offering extended admissions hours and online chat sessions as needed to accommodate students' requests among other items," the college said in a press release.

"We realize that this is a stressful time for all of those in the Mid-Continent community from the administration, faculty, students and their families," Midway President John Marsden said. "I have already offered our support to the administration at Mid-Continent . . . and held internal discussions with our staff to reinforce the need to assist with transferring students and any faculty that might be looking at open positions we have."

Marsden said in the release, issued Saturday, that Midway had received "many calls" from Mid-Continent students. Enrollment Dean Stephanie Whaley said, "Our admissions counselors are working to assure those students that we will work to assist them in getting their official transcripts in order to do transcript evaluations. Our summer and fall registration periods are still open so we can work with them to see when they can get started."

Whaley said Midway's online programs "can be a good resource for those students who can't travel to our Midway or Lexington location." The Admissions Office will host online chats for all potential transfer students Wednesday, April 23 and Wednesday, April 30 from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m.
To register for these online events, students can go to www.midway.edu and look for CollegeWeek Live Transfer Chat Session.

The news release included information that transfers from Mid-Continent will need to know:
• Add Midway and its code, 001975, to the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) at http://www.fafsa.ed.gov.
• Complete the application for admission on the Midway website (click on "apply now").
• Call the admissions office at 888-75-MIDWAY for a special code to waive the application fee.
• Contact an admissions counselor for help in getting transcripts.

UPDATE, May 2: College spokeswoman Ellen Gregory said Midway has received 80 or more inquiries from Mid-Continent students, but said she did not know the exact number of processed applications because it is still early in the process of obtaining transcripts and other needed information. She said the college continues to offer assistance as needed to those students who are looking to transfer to one of our evening or online programs. “With students around the state, our online programs are a good option for many of them,” she said.

Thursday, April 17, 2014

Broadcaster, author and former jockey Donna Barton Brothers will give the main address at Midway College's commencement Saturday, May 10 at 11 a.m. in the Graves Amphitheater. The service will honor 353 graduates, including those who earned degrees in December and at the end of the spring 2014 semester.

"Each year we want our commencement ceremony to be unique and special for our graduates who have reached an important milestone," President John Marsden said in a press release. "Ms. Barton Brothers' life experiences are extraordinary, and we look forward to her personal message of inspiration to our graduates."

In 1995, Barton Brothers was the leading stakes-winning rider at Churchill Downs and placed second in the Breeder's Cup Juvenile on Hennessey. She has been with NBC Sports since 2000 and has covered the Kentucky Derby, Preakness Stakes, Belmont Stakes, and Breeder's Cup among many other events. She is the author of Inside Track: Insider's Guide to Horse Racing.

Wednesday, April 16, 2014

Tom Bozarth’s final budget proposal as Midway mayor,
discussed by the city council Monday, calls for several equipment upgrades
including a new fire truck to replace one that is 42 years old.

Bozarth expects a new truck to cost around $235,000 and the
city to finance it over a 10 years using one of its certificates of
deposit. He plans to make a down payment
of $100,000 to $125,000 and have the option to pay it off early.

Along with a new fire truck, Bozarth is looking to spend
$5,000 on maintenance at the fire department and $15,500 for two new mowers,
$4,889 for a leaf box and $4,700 for a utility trailer to reduce employee
trips.

Bozarth told the council that his plan would be to surplus the
oldest mower and have any proceeds go towards the cost, as they have done with
equipment upgrades in the past. He said
the oldest mower is about 12 years old.

The money apparently would come from the city’s surplus,
which is listed in the budget as “contingency,” $205,958 of the total budget of
$1,613,058, and from an increase in occupational-tax income.

Bozarth’s budget anticipates $275,000 in occupational-tax
revenue in 2014-15, a 10 percent rise from 2013-14. He noted the creation, and
expected creation, of new jobs at the Interstate 64 interchange.

The budget projects property-tax revenue
to remain at $115,000, which is the same figure in the 2014 budget. Business license fees are expected to be
$12,000, less than the $15,000 budgeted this year but more than the $10,000
budgeted in 2012-13..

The proposed budget has $10,000 for sidewalks. The 2013-14
budget had $98,385 for sidewalk upgrades, but that included $70,000 for the
Gratz Street sidewalk and wall and $20,000 for the Main Street handicapped ramp
– a cost that Bozarth said will be only $12,000 as a result of a donation from
R.J. Corman Railroad Co.

The sidewalk budget raised the question of how the city sets
priorities for such work and whether the city,
property owners or both should pay for sidewalk upgrades.

Bozarth said in an interview that it isn’t right to make
homeowners pay entirely for upgrades. “I
don’t think a homeowner can pay for sidewalk repair,” he said, noting the large
number of rental properties and fixed-income homeowners in the city. Also, he
said, “I don’t think it’s fair to put a new sidewalk in when we have an old
sidewalk that needs repaired. It’s a
safety issue and it needs to be addressed.”

Perhaps the largest single sidewalk project would be to
build a walk from Brand Street to the entrance of the Homeplace at Midway, the
senior community being built on Stephens Street across from Midway College.
When Council Member Bruce Southworth, who lives at the corner of Stephens and
Brand, mentioned it, Bozarth said the city should plan for it.

“What I would like to see is a plan … to get a cost” for
sidewalk needs, said Bozarth, who is not seeking re-election this year. “That’s
something that’s going to take a long time to plan.”

Council Member Sharon Turner, who is running for mayor, said
she would like to see the council rate sidewalk needs “the way we did water
lines and go through the list.”

Council Member Grayson Vandegrift, the other candidate for
mayor, said, “As a council we should develop a kind of comprehensive sidewalk
strategy plan.”

Retiring Council Member Aaron Hamilton said, “We already did
that two years ago.” Turner said, “But we didn’t work off of it.” She said she
would look for the list.

Council Member Sara Hicks said trees should be considered in
the sidewalk plan, because walks get pushed up by tree roots.

The largest increase in the budget is for a new
contract with the Versailles Police Department, which patrols all of Woodford
County under contract with the county and Midway. The city budgeted $68,667 for
the contract this year; the proposed budget calls for $100,000.

“It’s not unreasonable,” said Midway Council Member Bruce
Southworth, a former Versailles city administrator. “Everything goes up.”
Longtime Council Member Sharon Turner said she had never had any complaints
about police protection.

The Versailles City Council “just asked that we increase the
contract,” Police Chief John Wilhoit told the Midway council. “Our budget’s
gone up.” Bozarth said he understood that, citing as an example retirement
contributions equaling 42 percent of salaries for hazardous-duty employees such
as police.

At Bozarth’s request, Wilhoit agreed to make the new
contract run four years instead of three. “Unless something drastic happens, I
think this will ride out for four years,” Wilhoit said.

There is a $6,000 maintenance increase in the proposed
cemetery budget for 2015 as a result of the plan to build an additional
sidewalk to wrap around behind the veterans’ monument and next to the fuve
flagpoles that are to be erected, one for each branch of service.

Bozarth looks to spend $7,500 on the tank at the old sewer
plant so it can be used in a demonstration project for Kentucky State
University’s aquaculture program. He told council members that Steve Mims of KSU would make another
appearance before them to discuss the project.

The proposed budget has $54,984 for City Hall salaries, a
cut in this year’s budgeted amount of $57,062.
A cutback in her overtime caused the decrease, City Clerk-Treasurer
Phyllis Hudson told the Messenger, “I took out some of
the overtime because I don’t receive overtime anymore.” Hudson said she makes $40,000 a year. The
mayor gets $100 a month and council members get $50 a month.

The proposed budget includes $5,000 for the Woodford County
Economic Development Authority. The
2013-14 budget allotted no money for the EDA, but the council has since given
EDA $5,000, so the proposed budget would not be a change in policy.

The proposal has a
snow-removal budget of $25,000, up $5,000 from $20,000 this year. Since being reclassified as a fourth-class
city, Midway has been independently contracting snow removal because the county
would no longer do the work. The council
agreed that contracting has been successful during this tough and long
winter. They noted that the $20,000
budgeted for 2014 was almost entirely used.

The council will discuss the budget again at its regularly
scheduled meeting Monday, April 21 at 5:30 p.m. at City Hall, and again at
another special meeting on Monday, April 28 at 9 a.m. at City Hall. For a PDF copy of the budget, click here.

Tuesday, April 15, 2014

The Midway City Council voted Monday to contribute $1,000 toward the Francisco's Farm Art Festival for next year, not the $3,000 that the festival committee had requested for this year.

Mayor Tom Bozarth said city workers would provide the assistance the committee had requested, but "I think we should raise the money from private donations, and I'll be willing to make a contribution." He said later, "We'll try to get people to donate."

Council Members Sara Hicks and Dan Roller, who are on the festival committee, abstained from voting but took part in the discussion beforehand.

Roller said the festival is being done entirely by volunteers, and the only compensation has been for the two jurors who judged the would-be exhibitors. Hicks, who is president of Midway Renaissance, the festival's main sponsor, said it is paying Midway College for use of its facilities. "They'll have their own security, but we'll also provide our own security," she said. "There's just a small core of us putting it on and we're all doing it on our own time."

Hicks said any profits from the festival "will go to something in the city of Midway," and added later, "Last year we ran in the red; the year before we gave $5,500 to the Homeplace" at Midway, the senior living community being built across Stephens Street from the college.

Council Member Grayson Vandegrift complimented Hicks for the group's efforts, including bringing the festival back to the college after three years at Equus Run Vineyards, a site that did not sit well with some Midway merchants.

A $3,000 gift would have made the city a "silver sponsor" listed on promotional materials and having a free sponsor tent. Hicks noted that the city was once a sponsor of the 10-year-old festival. Bozarth said that for the festival's first year, the city issued a $5,000 check "that didn't come before the council," on which he served at the time.

Hicks noted that the festival needs T-shirts, and suggested that the city could help with that and use them to promote the city. Bozarth replied, "I think that's a little bit outside the request" that the festival committee submitted for the April 3 council meeting, at which the request was deferred.

Vandegrift said, "I think donating to that festival is money well spent. It stays in the community." Council Member Sharon Turner said, "Every donation we give open the requests for more donations." Vandegrift said Francisco's Farm and the Midway Fall Festival, staged by the merchants, differ from other events, but the latter doesn't need city money. Turner said the city needs criteria to govern such donations. She and Vandegrift are running to succeed Bozarth, who is not seeking re-election.

Hicks suggested, "What would be ideal is if the city could become a partner for 2015." Bozarth noted that the city had donated $1,000 to Midway College for speakers, and it could "start with that" for Francisco's Farm. Turner then made a motion to donate $1,000 for the 2015 festival. The vote was 4-0.

Midway College has created two Spotlight Awards to highlight women and men who have been leaders in representing women's issues; have made an impact that benefits women in the state of Kentucky and beyond; and innovative women in their chosen field.

The awards will be presented at a dinner Thursday, June 5, before the college's annual Reunion Weekend. The ceremony is a time for the college to honor those who have helped it, by giving them the Pinkerton Vision Award or the Midway College Legacy Award.

The College is seeking nominations from the community for the Pinkerton Vision Award. Download form here. This award honors the legacy of Dr. L.L. Pinkerton, whose vision led to the establishment of the Kentucky Female Orphan School in 1847 as the first formal education for orphaned girls on the site that is now Midway College.
Criteria for include: (a) an individual or group (male or female) who has had a direct impact on improving the lives of women; (b) a woman who has served as an outstanding role model for women and young ladies, or (c) a woman who has displayed great leadership, innovative thinking and influence in her chosen career.
The recipient must be a Kentucky native, resident or organization located in Kentucky.

A committee of college representatives will select the award recipient.
The June 5 events will strat with a reception at 6 p.m. followed by the dinner and awards at 7 p.m. in the Piper Dining Hall inside the McManis Student Center.

The college says all proceeds from the dinner will go to support its ongoing academic programming and student scholarships.
To make a nomination, purchase tickets, become a sponsor of the event or find out more about the awards dinner, visit www.midway.edu/spotlight or call Scott Fitzpatrick at 846-5300.

Monday, April 14, 2014

The precise proposed route of the Bluegrass Pipeline, or at least the original proposed route, is now public, thanks to The Courier-Journal, which filed a Freedom of Information Act request to get maps that the natural-gas-liquids enterprise filed with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers as part of an application for permits to cross streams. The Louisville newspaper has published the maps on its website; those showing the route in or near the Midway area appear below, running from north to south. Note that most of the maps are tilted about 50 degrees from due north.

This map shows the pipeline leaving Scott County, entering Franklin County and crossing US 460 (Frankfort-Georgetown Road) just east of Woodlake. Most of this area is in Midway's ZIP code.

This map shows the pipeline nearing the South Fork of Elkhorn Creek, which it would cross shortly after Mile 289 of the pipeline. (Click on any map to see a larger version.)

The pipeline would cross the creek in Franklin County, then enter Woodford County, cross Leestown Road near the county line, go under Interstate 64 and take a dogleg to Duckers Road.

The route then follows the east side of Old Frankfort Pike, crosses that road and heads west toward US 60 (Frankfort-Versailles Road), leaving the Midway ZIP code when it crosses the highway.

More maps will be added. For the story, by C-J environmental writer Jim Bruggers, click here.

Sunday, April 13, 2014

By Kristen Sekinger and Al Cross
University of Kentucky School of Journalism and Telecommunications

The Woodford County Planning and Zoning Commission has recommended rezoning part of Midway Station back to industrial, signaling that the failed industrial park might generate hundreds of jobs after all.

Dennis Anderson, developer of Midway Station and the former Weems property across Interstate 64, said before Thursday evening’s meeting that the success of the Shell convenience store and the planned McDonald’s restaurant in the Green Gables development will carry over to Midway Station.

“The Shell station was a big success,” he said, and “McDonald’s is the biggest dollar money” among restaurant chains. He said more than half of the Shell store’s business comes from the interstate. The commission also approved a final development plan for Green Gables and plat for McDonald's.

Area to be rezoned industrial is outlined in purple. Residential zones are yellow. (Click on image for larger version)

Anderson is requesting that 43.5 acres on the north side of Midway Station now zoned residential be changed to light industrial. The commission’s recommendation goes to the city council, which is expected to approve it, since outgoing Mayor Tom Bozarth and the two council members running to succeed him have indicated that they support the idea of turning some of the residential tracts into job-creating properties.

Anderson’s request is at the behest of the Woodford County Economic Development Authority, which owns the property and has prospective industrial buyers for the land, perhaps a supplier for the Toyota plant at Georgetown.

Anderson’s attorney, Dick Murphy, noted that the county’s comprehensive plan, adopted in 2011, calls for an increase in manufacturing jobs.
“We think it will be a great benefit to the community,” Murphy said.

Multiple strategies for developing the property have failed. After the county and city borrowed millions to buy and develop the property, only four lots were sold and only three very small industries located there.

In 2007, rezoning of the property was approved for relocation of Bluegrass Stockyards from Lexington, but the company dropped the idea when it became apparent that a court challenge from opponents of the plan would delay it for years.

In 2008, burdened by debt payments on property that had generated little income, EDA and the city contracted with Anderson to create an integrated community, which included commercial and residential zones and recreational areas. The property was rezoned again, but the recession stalled development.

“A lot of things have happened since 2008,” Murphy said. “Timing is everything. We brought that zone change to you just three months before the economy started collapsing.”
He added, “Dennis, to his credit, has kept up his agreements with the Economic Development Authority and has extended those and have invested very substantial money in this property.”

In 2011, Anderson signed an agreement to buy Midway Station, under which pays the taxes on the property as well as the interest on the county and city’s debt.
Later in 2011, the commission and the local governments adopted the new comprehensive plan that has as one of its goals an increase in industrial employment, which declined during the recession.

In aisle seats at commission meeting: Bozarth, Anderson, Soper

The land to be rezoned is the northernmost portion of Midway Station, and is adjacent to a tract where the small industries are located. Planning Director Pattie Wilson said there would be 54.2 acres of light industrial land if rezoned.
Wilson said in the meeting that no specific users for the property “have been identified at this time.”

She also noted that traffic to and from the industrial section will have a separate entrance from the commercial and residential section.
“The economics have changed,” she said, “and it appears that it would be more beneficial for the community and the property to have an area for large-lot industrial users.”

Tom Guilfoil, owner of a small industry in Midway Station, asked if the new industry or industries would have to follow the strict design standards that he had to in the first phase of development. No one answered his question, but EDA Chairman John Soper said after the meeting that those standards were repealed by the 2011 plan.

Two commission members expressed reservations about industrial zoning next to residential, but Soper told the commission, “This is probably going to be a showplace for that corporation. They’re going to want to fit in and be a positive to the community and not a detriment,” he said.
“This will be a place where the people live, they work, shop, and that will contribute to the life in Midway… I think we can fit all of this together and make a unique place.”

He also said, “When we looked at the quality of the applicants and who we are talking to and what they build, I think we are satisfied.,Whoever is going to come to Woodford County is going to make a unique substantial investment because of the quality of life here and the quality of our workforce.”

Soper said Anderson is sacrificing long-term profit to convert the residential area to industrial: “He has been a great partner through this whole thing. … We’ve got obligations to the banks we need to meet, We’ve got obligations to the taxpayers that we need to meet. This is the big opportunity that we have to satisfy all of those.”

Craig McAnelly, EDA’s executive director, indicated what sort of industry might be coming.
“It fits in with the automotive industry that is expanding,” he said.

Jim Beam Brands considered the property for a distribution center that recently began construction on the Midway side of Frankfort.
“The economy is bouncing back right now,” McAnelly said. “It’s not just automotive bouncing back, it’s everything.”

McAnelly said after the meeting that the property has three prospective buyers. He expressed confidence that any of them would build a plant that will be compatible with the surroundings.
“When we looked at the quality of the applicants and what they build, I think we’re satisfied they can do that,” he said.

Commission member Jim Boggs said after the meeting that he was were surprised the rezoning drew no opposition. Perhaps partly joking, he said, “I guess they blew it on the stockyard.”

Friday, April 11, 2014

The Midway City Council will hold a special meeting at 9 a.m. Monday at City Hall to begin discussing outgoing Mayor Tom Bozarth's proposed budget for the 2014-15 fiscal year, which begins July 1. A copy of the proposal, in a 1.2-mb PDF, is available by clicking here.

Thursday, April 10, 2014

A judge denied Midway College’s request Wednesday to seal
public records of a lawsuit filed by seven former employees claiming breach of
contract and age discrimination.

Leila O’Carra, an attorney for the college, had filed a
motion asking the court to “seal the entire record in this case” in an attempt
to prevent “sensitive” financial documents that could cause the college
“significant harm” from being released to the public.

According to the lawsuit filed last month, the seven
plaintiffs received letters from the college “on or around” Sept. 20, 2013,
informing them that “due to alleged financial hardships” it was terminating its
contracts on the grounds of lack of “available funding.”

In the hearing at the Woodford County Courthouse, Circuit
Judge Paul Isaacs, right, said the college’s motion to seal the entire record when the
case “hasn’t even started” is “extreme.”

O’Carra argued that the legitimate public interest in the
case is “minimal” since the dispute relates solely to the employment
relationship between the college and the plaintiffs and there are no
allegations implicating the public safety or health and, as a result, the judge
should exercise the broad discretion that the law gives him to seal the entire
record.

Isaacs said he was hesitant to do so because the same
discretion would be sought by other businesses.

O’Carra replied that the college’s interests were
“compelling” since it wants to seal financial information and because she does
not “think the public interest,” in regards to these particular documents, “is
affected.”

O’Carra also argued that the sealing of the records would be
important in protecting those who are not parties in the suit.

“You’re asking me to
seal documents I haven’t seen,” said Isaacs, noting that he could not know if
the documents present a privacy issue if he has not seen them.

Isaacs also said the college’s motion to seal the entire
record suggests there “might be something embarrassing to the college” and that
is why it wants to close it off from the public.

While Isaacs did overrule the motion, he also said he would
“entertain the idea” of sealing specific documents within the case that
contained sensitive financial information.

The plaintiffs Richard Berry, 61; Eric Bolland, 66; Stephen
Clark, 65; Francis Fletcher, 61; former Lexington mayor Teresa Isaac, 58; Wendy
Hoffman, 57; and Saleem Mirza, 52, allege that they did not seek employment
anywhere else because they relied on the contracts presented to them in May
2013 and were never advised that those contracts would be terminated.

Midway College also filed a motion seeking dismissal of the
plaintiffs’ “promissory estoppel/detrimental reliance” count of the lawsuit.
The college argues that because the plaintiffs are also claiming breach of
contract they cannot also claim promissory estoppel and “as a matter of law” it
“must be dismissed.”

The college has also asked for more time to respond to the suit so that it can make its “response only to those
claims that remain pending after the court rules on the motion to dismiss” the estoppel count.

Isaacs did not rule on this motion, but did imply that
he agreed with the college’s argument and would dismiss the estoppel count.

UPDATE, July 3: Isaacs declined to dismiss the estoppel count, writing in an order filed July 1 that "Plaintiffs are persuasive in their distinction that their promissory-estoppel claim hinges not on the promise contained within their contracts, but in their extra-contractual discourse with their respective hiring authority." Isaacs also formally rejected the request to seal the record, but said the college could request that parts of material obtained in the discovery process, through subpoenas and depositions, be sealed. Isaacs also gave the college more time to reply to the lawsuit.

Wednesday, April 9, 2014

The Woodford County Board of Zoning Adjustment voted 3-1 Monday night to allow McDonald's Corp. to erect a 50-foot-tall sign on the lot where it plans to build a restaurant, in the Green Gables development formerly known as the Weems property. The normal limit for an on-premise sign is 40 feet.

McDonald's is also expected to rent space from the state to putits golden-arches logo sign on the services sign in this photo.

Gust Mecera, a McDonald's representative from Columbus, Ohio, told the board that the sign needed to be 50 feet high to be visible from eastbound Interstate 64. The company expects most of the restaurant's business will come from the interstate.

Mecera provided the board several photographs of a dummy sign hung from a boom truck showing the visibility of the proposed height. The captions said that the sign would not be visible half a mile from the eastbound exit, but would be visible a quarter-mile from it. Photos of the westbound approach, from which the sign would be even more visible, did not indicate the distance from the westbound exit. For those photos, in a 4-mb PDF, click here.

Board Member Marjorie Evans of Versailles questioned whether the variance would set a precedent, but Board Chairman Tim Turney and Member Al Schooler of Midway said each request is judged independently and the board shouldn't base a decision of what might happen. Schooler moved to approve the variance and Evans voted against it.

The board's action is final. Variances do not have to be approved by the Planning Commission. McDonald's has not applied for a building permit, but its request for the sign variance, and the board's approval of it, appears to pave the way for the Golden Arches.

Developer Dennis Anderson of Anderson Communities said the variance was one of several things McDonald's wants before proceeding, but he said the negotiations are far enough along that an agreement between the two companies has been drafted.

Friday, April 4, 2014

Former Gov. Brereton Jones’ colt Albano placed fourth in the
Louisiana Derby last weekend, picking up points for the Kentucky Derby, but
Jones said this week that the young three-year-old is just not quite ready to run the big race.

“We could push him into the Derby, and he’s beaten several
other horses who will be running in it.” Jones said in an interview at his
Airdrie Stud farm west of Midway. “I could be making a mistake by not doing
that, but I don’t think so.”

The decision was a mutual one between Jones and the horse’s
trainer, Larry Jones (no relation), said the former governor. He holds a strong
philosophy about rigorously training his racehorses and compares it to
preparing athletes.

“If you want your son to be a good athlete … you let him go
out and play with the guys who may be tougher than he is, he’ll get stronger,
and he’ll become a better athlete. That’s the way with some of these horses.”
Jones said. “It’s like if you look at a high school football player, you can
see … if he’s going to be a real athlete or may need another year or two to
reach his peak.”

Jones said the decision might have been different if Albano
had placed in first or second in Louisiana. “He very well could have done that,
but he was fouled.”

Albano was the fifth horse to pass the finish line, but
because he was shoved going into the final turn, the stewards moved him up to
fourth. That earned him 10 points toward qualifying for the Kentucky Derby, in
the system Churchill Downs uses to limit the field to no more than 20 horses.

Fourth place was Albano’s lowest finish in six starts. He
came into the race off a very close second-place finish in last month’s Risen
Star Stakes, a 1 1/16-mile race. The Louisiana Derby, also at the Fair Grounds
in New Orleans, is a mile and an eighth; the Kentucky Derby is a mile and a
quarter.

Albano’s first race as a three-year-old was the LeComte
Stakes, a mile and 70 yards at the Fair Grounds in January. He finished second
by almost seven lengths to Vicar’s In Trouble – who won the Louisiana Derby, upsetting
favorite Intense Holiday, who had beaten Albano by a nose in the Risen Star. In
December, Albano won the six-furlong Sugar Bowl Stakes at the Fair Grounds.

Albano wins Sugar Bowl (Lou Hodges Photography/Fair Grounds)

Jones bred Albano, who won't actually turn 3 until next month. The horse is by Istan out of Pocho’s Dream Girl. His grandsire,
Fortunate Prospect, was a top sprinter who won 13 races out of 39 starts and
earned $439,875 during his lifetime.

Albano is one of four stakes horses Jones has named for employees of the Sea View Hotel in Bal Harbour, Fla., a popular vacation spot
for horse people. Jones’ recently successful horse and Albano’s
brother, Mark Valeski, is named for a pool attendant he met at the hotel
as he got into the horse business 40 years ago.

He said that when he
asked Valeski if he would mind having a
horse named for him,”You would have
thought I asked if he wanted a million dollars for his birthday, he got so
excited about that.” When the horse won
the 2012 Peter Pan Stakes at New York’s Belmont Park, Jones said he gained new
inspiration on how to give homage those he remembered from early in his horse
career.

Jones said he thought, “If it means so much to Mark, it’s
bound to mean a lot to the other people who work at Sea View, particularly the
ones who aren’t working in the higher level jobs,” he said, as faint tears
emerged from his eyes.

He said he asked a short-order cook named Albano if he could
name a horse after him, and laughed remembering the answer: “He said … I was
hoping you would ask, since you named one after Mark.”

Airdrie Stud office (Photo by Darius Owens)

Jones, who will be 75 on June 27, has owned many
racehorses through the years on his farm, three miles from Midway. He said the
farm has 2,700 acres and employs 77 full-time workers.

Before and during his 1991-95 governorship, Jones was known almost exclusively as a breeder and syndicator. Since then, he has moved into more racing because of the money and the sensation that he gets. “I love the feelings you get from racing horses,” he said. “It’s a competitive situation, and it’s a way to really learn how to raise a good horse better than selling it to somebody else.”

Jones says Airdrie focuses on what’s good for the horses,
not building fancy barns that might appeal to horse buyers, though he doesn't begrudge other farm owners for that. His model of
rigorous training and keeping his horses outside, even in difficult weather,
has worked wonders for him in the past, he said, and he plans on keeping it: “If you raise your horse to be a racehorse and not as a sales horse, I think
you raise a better racehorse.”

Thursday, April 3, 2014

The City of Midway will
conduct its annual water main
flushing Monday,
April 14, through Friday,
April 18, from 9 a.m. to 4
p.m. each day. Lines are flushed by simultaneously opening several
fire hydrants in an area
to create increased water
flows, to
clean the distribution system
of any mineral deposits and
sediment that may have built
up in the mains.

As usual, the city says it will temporarily
use free chlorine rather than
chloramines to disinfect the
system from April 7 through April 21. The water will still be safe to
drink, but customers may
notice a more significant
smell of chlorine in the water. Customers who must dechlorinate
their water, such
as owners of dialysis units or aquariums, will not need
to change dechlorination
procedures.

During flushing, it is possible
that discoloration of water
may occur because of the
increased flow from flushing
the hydrants. The city says the water
will clear up after it has run
for a few minutes. If any
discoloration occurs, users are advised to run the
faucet until the water is clear
before washing clothes or similar uses. For more information, call
City Hall at 846-4413.

If you’re interested in learning the art of making Southern-style beaten biscuits, this Saturday just might be your lucky
day.

Weisenberger Mill, the Holly Hill
Inn and the Midway Nursing Home Task Force are sponsoring an "Old Fashioned
Beaten Biscuit Workshop" at the Midway Christian Church Fellowship Hall this
Saturday from 2 to 4 p.m.

Midway’s master beaten biscuit maker, Charles Logan, is
conducting the workshop for all registered participants. The Rev. Heather McColl, pastor of the
church, said Wednesday they have 50 registrants. plan on accepting 50 to 55 registrations and had 47 confirmed
attendees as of 1:30 p.m. Tuesday.

Beaten biscuits are a classic Southern food that dates to
the 19th Century. They are made a
little differently than traditional biscuits and their name derives from the
unique method in which they are made. Years ago in a time where yeast was
scarce, the dough would literally be beaten with a hard object against a hard
surface in order to make the dough rise.

“They would take a paddle and
beat the dough and beat the air out of it,” Logan explains, “It’s practically
the same recipe, the difference is, you try to get the air out of the
dough.” The dough is originally made from flour, salt, sugar, lard and
cold water.

Logan, a Midway native, says he first heard of beaten biscuits when he and his
wife moved to their current home in Midway in 1951 and has been making them according to his recipe
for about 25 years.

“The elderly couple next door would make them and sell them
to folks around town,” Logan said. “Customers would come pick them up on
Saturday mornings, and they would hand some out to our kids, and they really
enjoyed them, so eventually we learned the recipe.” Logan has made his biscuits for local events
such as bake sales and fundraisers.

For years Logan has been collecting Biscuit Brakes, the special machine used to make the biscuits, and he is thought to be one of the few remaining sources who know how to make the classic biscuit.

A table-top machine has been donated for the event and will
be auctioned off in a silent auction on Saturday. Proceeds and donations will go to The
Homeplace at Midway, the senior living community with nursing facilities that
is under construction across Stephens Street from Midway College.

Featured Post

News in and around the small but surprisingly interesting town of Midway, Ky., reported, written and photographed mainly by students in community journalism classes in the University of Kentucky School of Journalism and Media, taught by Extension Professor Al Cross, director of the Institute for Rural Journalism and Community Issues,www.RuralJournalism.org.